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After years of work, Christian Zsilavetz, a transgender educator and executive director of Pride School, is excited that his K-12 private school for LGBT educators, students, and families will finally be opening. It will be located in the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta, Georgia—chosen because it is such a profoundly LGBT-friendly space. (Georgia Voice – 7.26.16)
See also: “First school opens in Atlanta for gay and transgender students” (WSB Radio – 7.25.16)
UUs connect across cultures in their communities
A group called Toward Right Relations from Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Washington has been volunteering to support a local event called Paddle to Nisqually. The annual canoe journey offers participants a personal journey towards healing and recovery of culture, traditional knowledge, and spirituality. Unitarian Universalists have been volunteering for months making necklaces and sewing dance regalia, among many other tasks. Church members say the effort has been an amazing learning experience. (Thurston Talk – 7.29.16)
During Ramadan earlier this year, members of First Parish in Malden, Massachusetts, joined with members of their local Muslim community for an Iftar celebration at the church. Both groups brought potluck-style dishes for the traditional evening meal eaten at sundown during Ramadan. Afterward, they shared stories and several Muslim attendees answered questions about their faith and tackled difficult conversations about terrorism and anti-Muslim bigotry. (Neighborhood View – 7.13.16)
Two different responses to banner vandalism
After having their Black Lives Matter banner vandalized three times and eventually stolen, members of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship at Stony Brook, New York, made the decision to remove the banner. Church leaders say their decision came, in part, out of respect for a preschool located on church grounds whose leaders did not agree with the Black Lives Matter statement. (News 12 Long Island – 7.26.16)
Fox Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Appleton, Wisconsin, has had its Black Lives Matter banner vandalized three times in the past year, and it was stolen most recently on July 17. In response, it has coordinated an effort to have individual members of the community display Black Lives Matter yard signs as a show of support for the movement. “If the banner is stolen again, it will be replaced as many times as needed,” said Marie Blohowiak, the church’s congregational life coordinator. (Wisconsin Public Radio – 7.25.16)